


Not Enough

by orphan_account



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: (I promise this is serious its just that tags are hARD TO MAKE SERIOUS OKAY), (it kinda is but don’t judge ok), ALL THE ANGST, Adrien needs a hug too, Adrien/Marinette - Freeform, Angst, But it’s not my fault I’m so self-indulgent, Can be read as a one-shot or two-shot… and soon three-shot!, F/M, Ladybug - Freeform, Ladybug/Chat Noir - Freeform, Maybe - Freeform, Poor Marinette, Send me help please, The characters are kinda OOC, They’re both upset little children, Why do I love to torture these kids so much wth, marinette needs a hug, maybe not, sWEET LORD ANGST, unhappy ending?, yoU’LL HAVE TO READ IT TO SEE ;))
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-24
Updated: 2019-09-26
Packaged: 2020-10-27 14:17:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20761742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Ladybug realises who Chat Noir is, she has to deal with the fact that Chat Noir, Adrien, loves her — he just loves the mask.





	1. Chapter 1

”I’m sorry Marinette, I really am, but… I love someone else."

Marinette had forced herself to smile and nod. She’d forced out an ”I understand. Don’t feel bad about this, I’m sorry.” before she’d rushed away.

Now, a day later, it still hurt. She guessed she deserved to be rejected after loving Adrien, but at the same time having feelings for Chat. At least, as Ladybug, she could put on a brave face and pretend everything was fine, if only for a little while.

She was sitting on the Eiffel Tower, looking out on the city. It was night, and the sky was beautifully lit up with stars, and the warm lights from the houses beneath was a welcomed sight. When she head the sound of Chat Noir leaping down behind her, she didn’t react.

”Hello, m’lady.” He greeted her, but something was off. She could tell right away.

”Chaton? What’s wrong?” She turned around too look at him, concerned. He chuckled helplessly.

”That obvious, huh?” He sat down next to her, sighing heavily. ”Yesterday, a friend of mine confessed she had feeling for me."

Ladybug felt her throat tighten uncomfortable as she was reminded that she’d done just that as well.

”Of course, I rejected her, because I love you and only you.” He turned to her to give her his best flirty Chat Noir-grin. Ladybug gave him a reassuring smile.

”I hope you were gentle with her. It really sucks to have your heart broken."

Chat Noir lowered his gaze to the city below them.

”I hope I was.”

”… What did she say to you, and how did you respond to her? You don’t have to tell me, of course, but… Maybe I can give you some advice?” She forced her feelings down. She needed to comfort her partner, he was more important than her.

”Well, she said ’hey, A— Chat Noir,” He corrected himself quickly, "I really like you, and I mean as more than friends. It’s okay if you don’t like me back, but…"

Ladybug felt her blood run cold.

”Then, I said that, ’I’m so sorry, oh my god. I’m sorry, name-of-the-friend, I really am, but I love someone else’. I just… I could never love her. She’s really cool, and amazing and all, but… I just never will love her.” He sighed, then turned her eyes back to Ladybug. He was oblivious to how every word had felt like a sword, cutting through her heart over and over.

She forced a smile, despite how cold and absolutely _devastated_ she felt.

”Just… Give her space for now, yeah?” She choked out. ”She- uh, she needs time, I think. Y-you didn’t… do anything wrong.”

Chat Noir’s plain concern for her was showing from his expression, and Ladybug had to get out of there, she _had_ to.

”I- oh! Sorry, I have to go, I, err, have a test I have to study for that I completely forgot!” She forced a smile, willing the tears brimming behind her eyes away. ”I, um, goodnight!"

She swung away, leaving behind a confused and slightly hurt Chat Noir — or rather, _Adrien_.

————————————————————————————————————— 

”He doesn’t love me.” It was a statement. Tikki looked down at her with sad, blue eyes. ”He loves the mask, Tikki. The idea of me. Not… Not actually me."

”He’s just-"

”No, Tikki. We both know he just… doesn’t.”

Tikki stayed silent. After all, Marinette was right.

—————————————————————————————————————

The next night on patrol, Chat Noir was more confused than ever as to why Ladybug was so cold to him. Had he done something wrong? He decided to leave her alone.

Two nights later, and her demeanour not having changed, he finally confronted her.

”Why are you being like this to me?” He asked her, confused and hurt. Almost feeling betrayed as well. ”What did I do wrong?"

Ladybug chuckled darkly.

”God, Adrien,” She turned her eyes to him and shook her head, and his eyes widened.

_She’d said his name. She knew who he was._

”You’re… really something else, you know that?” She turned her eyes to the sky as Chat Noir stood frozen, staring at her. She then turned her face to him again, and his breath hitched at how hurt she looked. So lost, _broken_. He’d never seen her like that.

”How… H-how did you know?"

She looked away.

”… You maybe should be more careful with what you tell people."

Was all she’d said before leaving him.

—————————————————————————————————————

The next day in school, Adrien was out of it. Marinette noticed.

She hated that she felt bad for him, because she shouldn’t.

But, unfortunately, love doesn’t go away overnight.

It didn’t matter how much you wanted it to.

Instead, Marinette had to deal with a broken heart, which Adrien didn’t. He probably never would by her hands, because Marinette would be too weak to say no if he ever asked her to be together with him.

Stupid love.

—————————————————————————————————————

When Chat Noir met Ladybug at the Eiffel Tower the next night, he silently sat down next to her.

”… Please tell me how you found out."

”I suppose it’s only fair I tell you."

She didn’t look at him as she spoke.

”You told my civilian self the same thing you told Ladybug. Care to guess what?"

Chat Noir stared at her for a moment, then took a moment to think.

Then horrifying realisation dawned upon him.

”M-… Marinette…?"

Ladybug smiled bitterly.

”You’re in love with the mask, not me."

She left before he had the chance to say anything.

She didn’t come back as Ladybug.

After all, if she wasn’t enough for Adrien to love her for her,

then was she really enough to be Ladybug?

No, the truth was that Marinette was just not enough.


	2. More Than Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien tries to right his wrongs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to add a chapter from Adrien’s point of view — my poor fragile heart can’t take all the criticism of making Marinette make mistakes :´(  
(sHE’S UPSET OK, when ur upset you do stupid things!!)

Adrien wanted to run after Ladybug, Marinette, but he was frozen where he sat.

He’d… oh god, he’d told the _love of his life_ straight to her face that he could never love the girl beneath the mask. He’d promised to love said girl, even if she wasn’t like she was as Ladybug, and he’d screwed it up.

In his (not earned) defence, he’d only said that to stay loyal to Ladybug.

But he’d said that he’d never love _Marinette_, and Ladybug _was_ Marinette! He would, in all honesty, also be really hurt if he was told to his face by Ladybug that she’d never love Chat Noir.

After what felt like an eternity of debating if he should talk to her, explain himself and just _beg_ for forgiveness, or giving her time, he finally decided that tomorrow would have to do — after all, hadn’t she told him to give Marinette, _herself_, time?

—————————————————————————————————————

The next day in school Marinette didn’t talk to him. She ignored him when he said hi, ignored him when he asked if she wanted to eat lunch with him, ignored his existence. Alya shot death-glares at him whenever he attempted to look at Marinette (and he did deserve it. He was the biggest jerk on Earth).

So, he came to her the next night as Chat Noir. She spared him only a scowl before turning away. He didn’t miss how puffy her eyes were, how they were still filled to the brim with tears. He felt as if he’d been stabbed in the gut. He was the cause of her suffering.

”Mari, please!” He whimpered from the other side of the glass. She shot him another glare.

”I’m _done_, leave me alone!” She hissed just loud enough for him to hear.

'Done?'

”What do you mean?!” He blinked at her, his own eyes filling with tears. Was she done with _him_? Completely? Did she hate him? Was she going to ask him to give away his miraculous?

She pointed to her earrings.

Except there were no earrings there anymore.

”You’ll have a new, better, version of Ladybug to woo soon. Have fun.” She growled, and Chat Noir shrunk back at her words. When he saw a tear slide down her cheek he felt a whole waterfall coming out of his own eyes.

”Wh-what!? No!” He desperately tried to open the lock. He wanted to use cataclysm to get in, but Marinette would probably be even more pissed at him then. ”No, I don’t want any other Ladybug, I want you! I love you, please, M’lady!"

She turned away, and Chat Noir felt another stab to the gut as he saw her shoulders were shaking.

”You don’t. Go away.” Chat could barely hear her through the glass. His shoulders slumped.

”I’ll stay h-here until you let me in so we can talk.” He said, wincing at how shaky his voice was.

After a few seconds of defeated silence, she moved over to open up so he could come it. As he crawled in after her, she had went back to sit on her bed.

”What is it we have to talk about? I thought we were done. After all, you don’t love me, you rejected me, and I’m not your partner anymore.” She said, refusing to meet his eyes as more tears slipped from hers.

”We’re not done. I do love you, god, I do, and I—"

”You said you never could.”

”I was wrong—"

”No, you weren’t. You’re in love with the mask, and you’re pushing Ladybug onto Marinette, but we’re not the same person."

”You are! What’s the difference between you and Ladybug!?"

Marinette turned towards Chat Noir, glare unwavering.

”Ladybug is confident. She’s smart. She knows how to get her job done. She saves— _saved_ Paris on a daily basis, people love and appreciate her. Marinette?” She let out a bitter chuckle and shook her head. ”She’s clumsy. She does everything wrong, she’s not enough, she isn’t _Ladybug_. She doesn’t have confidence, and nobody likes her as much as Ladybug."

”Bullshit.” Chat Noir hissed. Marinette rolled her eyes. It made him genuinely _angry_. ”That’s just— _bullshit_, and we both know it. _You’re_ _Ladybug_! There is no difference between you and- well, _you_! Why do you sell yourself so short!? You’re amazing as Marinette, too, and I swear, if I hear you say _one_ _more_ _lie_ about yourself I’ll—"

”I DON’T LIE!” Marinette screeched, barely quiet enough for her parents not to hear. _Barely_. Chat Noir flinched back in surprise. ”We both know Ladybug and I are not the same! She’s got a whole lot of borrowed fucking confidence, and Marinette just doesn’t. Ladybug can save Paris, and what can Marinette do? Give some goddamned macaroons for her classmates!? How does that make Paris more safe!? Oh, and let’s not forget, Ladybug is loved back by the person she herself loves, and _Marinette isn’t_!"

Chat Noir stared at her in shock. Then the anger was back.

She was pissing him off.

”I _do_ love you!"

”No you _don’t_!"

”I _DO_!"

”OH!? AND WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT ’_I’LL NEVER LOVE HER_’ THEN, _HUH_!?” Angry tears were pouring out from her now. 

She hit a nerve.

A damn sensitive nerve, and she knew it.

He growled.

”I’m trying to _fix_ things, why are you making it so difficult?” He hissed, voice dangerously low. He’d probably never been as upset, angry, _hurt_.

”Because you can’t. _You’ve_ ruined it, and that’s not my fault.” She growled back, voice just as low.

Chat Noir took a deep breath. He had to get out of there. Now.

”Don’t ruin yourself because I’ve messed up. Don’t give up being Ladybug because of me.” Was all he managed to choke out before he left.

—————————————————————————————————————

Adrien barely managed to get himself to school the next day. He went on autopilot the whole day. He couldn’t really recall anything from it. Nothing really happened, not even an akuma — which was a bit weird.

Ladybug didn’t show up on patrol — he told himself he’d already expected that, but a part of him believed she would.

He didn’t confront her that night, as much as he wanted to.

—————————————————————————————————————

The next day was a weekend. By some miracle, he didn’t have any photoshoots. Maybe the universe was giving him time to fix things? He didn’t know.

This time, he went over to her.

She didn’t let him in.

—————————————————————————————————————

Why wouldn’t she talk to him? It’d been another week, and he’d tried to talk to her every darn night, but she never let him in anymore.

—————————————————————————————————————

She let him in.

She didn’t look at him, but shifted her hair to behind her ears.

Chat Noir cried happy tears at seeing her earrings back. Her kwami said a brief, awkward ’hi’ before hiding somewhere. He tried to hug her, but she pushed him away.

”I’m still mad at you.” She said, but then she looked at him, her eyes softer than he’d seen them in a while. ”But maybe we can fix things."

He cried happy tears again.

”That’s more than enough to make me happy, Princess."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may add another chapter again. Stay subscribed to this story for now!~ ;)
> 
> (Also, please be careful with my fragile heart ;-; It can only take so much criticism TwT)  
(ALSO ALSO, I don’t edit my stories that often, so mistakes are EVERYWHERE in them and I KNOW that!)


	3. Nearly, but not quite, Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Broken hearts can mend.
> 
> Hopefully.

Marinette spoke to Adrien, to Chat, again. She was slowly opening up, trusting him. He was… being a bit too kind for what she deserved. But she wouldn’t tell him that unless he brought it up — and he would want to talk about feelings, eventually.

For now, he seemed thankful she just wanted to talk to him.

Not like she deserved it, after throwing some fucking temper-tantrum. She was supposed to be Paris’ superhero, and still she’d nearly given that up because the boy she’d rejected over and over (but, in her defence, it wasn’t because she didn’t like him. It was because she knew that a relationship would eventually lead to an identity reveal, and she didn’t want to put him in danger!). She… didn’t deserve to be Ladybug anymore.

She maybe should’ve given her miraculous to Alya.

But the selfish part of her didn’t agree, because she loved being Ladybug. She loved being able to be confident for once. To be _wanted_. Genuinely wanted.

Then, about after three weeks of waiting, Chat Noir decided that enough time had passed. Ladybug knew it too, but she still dreaded it.

”So… I’ve had some time to think and, while I messed up pretty bad… so did you.” Adrien said looking down with furrowed eyebrows. He looked ashamed, for some reason. But he was right.

”… I know. I fucked up more than you did, and I just…” She sighed, putting a hand against her face. ”God, you deserve better. I… I overreacted. I’m supposed to be Ladybug, and I need to grow up and stop being the high-school girl with the high-school crush and the high-school drama. I’m… Fuck, I’m just so sorry."

”… You’re not the only one who messed up. I said some… pretty hurtful things, and that’s not justified, but neither of us are in the right here."

”Guess we’re both two idiots who hurt each other, then.” She snorted, looking at him with a bitter grin.

”Yeah.” He smiled back at her. ”Would one of the idiots be willing to forgive the other? He’ll forgive her in exchange."

”I though we already established she forgave her idiot.” Marinette smirked, and felt a bit of pride rush through her as she saw Adrien blush ever-so-slightly at being called _hers_.

”Th-then, uh, he forgives _his_ idiot a-as well.” Marinette snorted at his stuttering and emphasis on the word ’his’. (She ignored how her own face grew a bit warm as well.)

”Dork."

—————————————————————————————————————————————— 

”NO!” Chat Noir cried, choking on his own tears.

_She said she was fine._

”S-sorry, Chaton.” She gave him a smile, coughing. Chat Noir’s heart was practically crushed.

”Y-you… No. NO! Please, Ladybug, _Marinette_, please…” He sobbed, carefully hugging her closer. ”D-don’t leave me. Not now. Not— please, please, please…"

”If it makes it b-better, I did love you before as well…?"

That made it worse. That meant they’d wasted years, and the last few weeks they had together on trying to mend a broken relationship.

”I’m sorry.” She choked out. ”I-I’m sorry, I… I should’ve been better. You deserve better. I love you. I’m sorry, I love you so much…"

”I love you too, but-but please stay, please…” He begged, but even he knew by now that it was too late.

She’d die in an alleyway, filled with rats and a cluster of graffiti on the walls. She deserved better, not him.

”I…” She let out a last raspy breathe before she was gone.

It was nearly enough to get him to leave her and kill the motherfucker who had done this, Hawkmoth, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave her in their last moment.

He was nearly enough to save her, but he was too slow.

This time, he wasn’t enough.

Nearly, but not quite, enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You though there would be a happy end? Since I gave Mari her earrings back?
> 
> HAH U DON’T KNOW ME THEN ;))) I ALWAYS HAVE A MOTIVE FOR THE SHIT I DO

**Author's Note:**

> I’ll be counting the sounds of hearts breaking.  
Oh, one already!  
… Shit that was mine.  
wELP GUESS I BROKE MY OWN HEART YEET
> 
> (I might write another chapter — but I wouldn’t count on it.)
> 
> EDIT:  
Okay so no offence yall, but I’m not reading the comments on here anymore because either it’s… basically the same discussion over and over, pointing out the holes in this story that I am very well aware of. Whilst I do feel thankful that people want me to improve my writing by giving me criticism, I’m just,, not in the right mindset to take it right now. Sorry.  
Thank you for reading, anyways! <3


End file.
